Delayed error verification in quantum key distribution

Quantum key distribution (QKD) provides an unconditional secure key generation method between two distant legitimate parties Alice and Bob based on the fundamental properties of quantum mechanics, in the presence of an eavesdropper Eve. Since key reconciliation cannot always assure that the reconciled keys between Alice and Bob are identical, error verification is an important step in QKD. In this paper, we propose a scheme of delayed error verification using extra keys gained by privacy amplification with an arbitrarily small failure probability. The proposed scheme simplifies the post-processing procedure in QKD, which can be applied in practical QKD systems.